The superintendent of Denver Public Schools is being “recruited” by Miami-Dade County Public Schools in Florida, and he’s “agreed to participate in that process” — as if he had no choice.

As The Denver Gazette reports, Superintendent Alex Marrero hasn’t explained what he meant by being “recruited,” and Miami-Dade officials didn’t seem sure, either. But the district confirmed Marrero was among 21 applicants for the position.

“This is not a decision I made lightly,” Marrero said — praising “the great success we’ve shared in DPS during my tenure” and reiterating his focus on preparing for next school year.

Miami-Dade is the nation’s third-largest school district, with 335,000 students and a $4 billion budget — roughly four times the size of Colorado’s largest school district.

“He’s a well-sought superintendent,” board President Sochi Gaytán told The Denver Gazette. “So, there’s always people trying to recruit him.”

If the Florida district hires Marrero, it’ll do so at its own peril. 

And Denver’s students and staff would find overdue relief. Marrero’s record speaks for itself.

The superintendent touts the district’s move into “green” accreditation status, but DPS barely squeaked by with 57.6% against the state’s 56% minimum. High school achievement averaged 43.1%.

Marrero lauds an “historic” 81.9% graduation rate, but a diploma matters little when students graduate unprepared.

Among K-8 students, two-thirds aren’t proficient in math; 58% don’t meet basic reading and writing standards. Black and brown students are being left further behind.

Veteran journalist Alan Gottlieb argues Marrero’s tenure shows DPS culture “doesn’t seem to believe low-income kids of color can learn at high levels in large numbers.” But Gottlieb gives Marrero a “solid shot” at the job, if only because search firms aren’t known for finding the best candidates.

“There’s a bit of a ‘pobrecito’ syndrome prevalent inside DPS,” Gottlieb wrote on his DPS watchdog site, BoardHawk.org, summing up the mentality: “Many of these kids come from incredibly challenging backgrounds. We do our best for them, but we can only take things so far. Societal inequities and familial dysfunction just make this job so hard.”

To Gottlieb’s point, it’s a belittling mindset that limits achievement before it can even start.

No wonder enrollment keeps falling. The district lost another 1,200 students in 2025-26 despite being cushioned by an influx of illegal immigrants. Parents are voting with their feet, choosing other school districts as well as charters and homeschooling.

Marrero has prioritized expanding bureaucracy over student achievement. Even as enrollment fell and at least 10 schools closed, he’s rebuilt administrative ranks to near pre-pandemic levels while cutting 262 teacher positions.

No internal investigation has been ordered into the March 2023 East High School shooting, where a 17-year-old student shot two deans during a daily pat-down. Marrero’s revisions to the district’s “discipline matrix” following the shooting still put “equity” above safety.

His $346,529 salary and benefits contract, extended last year, made it harder to fire him “without cause.” That same board rated Marrero 73.5 out of 100, below his 75% target.

After board member John Youngquist challenged Marrero’s rosy narrative, the superintendent pushed the board to target Youngquist with a $100,000 investigation that culminated in Youngquist’s censure despite failing to substantiate any real allegations of wrongdoing.

A superintendent who treats accountability as a threat rather than his responsibility has no business leading Denver Public Schools.

And all of that isn’t even to mention Marrero’s notorious and abysmal record on transparency. He has done his level best to shut the press and public out of meetings, records — you name it.

Miami-Dade is invited to find out for themselves.